Black Friday is coming. And if you\'re not preparing right now — while everyone else is scrolling Instagram posts about turkey and family drama — you are leaving money on the table.
I\'ve run Black Friday campaigns for years. I\'ve helped coaches and course creators pull in six figures over a single weekend. I\'ve also watched good businesses fizzle because they decided on November 20th that maybe they should run a sale.
Don\'t be the November 20th version of yourself.
Start now. Today. This week. Here\'s the plan.
Why Black Friday Still Works (And Why Most People Miss It)
Here is what most online business owners get wrong about Black Friday: they think it\'s about discounting. It\'s not. It\'s about momentum.
Black Friday is the single biggest shopping day of the year. Consumer behavior is already shifted toward buying. People are primed. They have credit cards out. They are ready to spend.
Your job is to be there when that energy hits your audience.
Not to trick them. Not to manipulate them. To be ready with an offer that actually solves their problem, at a price that makes sense, at a moment when they\'re already in buying mode.
The coaches who crush Black Friday are the ones who prepared in October, not November. The ones who fizzle are the ones who wing it with a last-minute Instagram post and wonder why no one bought.
The Preparation Timeline That Actually Works
6 weeks out (early October): Finalize your offer. What are you discounting? What is included? What is NOT included? Write the copy. Build the landing page. Decide on the price.
4 weeks out (mid-October): Warm up your audience. Start mentioning the sale in your content, emails, and social posts. Not the details yet — just the anticipation. "We\'re doing something big this Black Friday. Stay tuned."
2 weeks out (early November): Build your landing page and ad campaign. Test your ads. Make sure everything is working. Set up your email sequence for the launch weekend.
1 week out (late November): Email your list. Tease the offer. Build scarcity and urgency into your messaging without lying about it. Don\'t say "last chance" if it\'s not last chance.
The weekend of (Thursday-Monday): Launch. Run your ads. Retarget everyone who visited your landing page. Follow up with email sequences.
What to Actually Discount (And What to Never Touch)
Here is the mistake I see constantly: people discount their flagship offer too deeply and wonder why it destroys their pricing architecture.
Do NOT discount:
- Your core flagship coaching program (you devalue this and make all future sales harder)
- Anything you just launched within the last 60 days
- Your highest-tier offer if it\'s already priced correctly
DO discount:
- Past course archives and older products nobody\'s buying anyway
- Entry-level offers (your $27-$97 products are perfect for this)
- Bundle deals — put three things together at 50% off and call it a bundle
- One-time mastermind or group coaching spots
I helped a coach restructure her Black Friday offer one year. Instead of discounting her $1,497 course to $497 (which she\'d done before and regretted), she bundled four older courses at 60% off and added a live Q&A call. Result: $31,000 in a single weekend. Same effort. Better strategy.
The Simple Launch Structure That Converts
You do not need a complicated funnel for Black Friday. Here is the entire structure:
Step 1: One blog post (or simple landing page) listing every deal you\'re running. Keep it plain. No fancy design. Just links to register or buy.
Step 2: One ad — simple black background, bold red or white text. One clear benefit. One link to the landing page. That\'s it.
Step 3: Retargeting. Everyone who visits your landing page gets retargeted with an ad over the weekend. They already showed interest. Close them.
Step 4: Email sequence. Day 1 announcement, Day 3 reminder, Day 5 urgency ("this ends tomorrow"), Day 7 close. Four emails. Done.
That\'s it. The coaches who run complicated funnels for Black Friday are usually overcomplicating something that works simply.
Running the Sale Correctly: Timing and Terms
Run the sale Thursday through Cyber Monday. That\'s the industry standard and it works because people expect it.
Pro tip: After Cyber Monday, run a 48-hour "We heard you missed it" sale on Tuesday-Wednesday for the stragglers who didn\'t catch the main promotion. This alone can add another 10-20% to your weekend total.
On terms: BOGO deals work. "Act now and get this free" works. "50% off and a bonus" works. Whatever you do, make sure the math makes sense for your business. You should not be selling at a loss expecting to make it up on volume unless you have a proven backend.
Bonus: Repeat This on New Year\'s
Once you\'ve run Black Friday successfully, you have the template. Run the same thing on New Year\'s with a countdown theme. "New Year, New You" sale. Same structure. Same funnel. Same ads. You\'re not starting from scratch — you\'re duplicating a proven system.
Ready to Grow Your Business?
Join Wealthy Coach Academy — my $197/month coaching program where I help you build a business that actually works. Or start with a $4.95 starter class and see what happens.
Frequently Asked Questions
When should I start preparing for Black Friday?
October. Not November. Not the week before. October. You need at least 4-6 weeks to warm up your audience, build your landing page, and test your ads. The coaches who start in October dominate. The ones who start in November fizzle.
Should I discount my flagship coaching offer?
No. Never discount your flagship offer below 20% and only if you have a specific strategic reason (launching a new version, bringing in a new cohort, etc.). Discounting flagship offers destroys your pricing architecture and makes all future launches harder.
What discount percentage works best?
50% off or more for older products and bundles. 20-30% off for recent products. Free bonus with purchase works better than straight discounts at higher price points because it doesn\'t devalue the offer itself.
Do I need paid ads for Black Friday?
No, but they help. If you have an established email list, organic social media can work. But Black Friday is crowded — paid ads get your offer in front of cold audiences who are already in buying mode. Budget at least $500-$1,000 for testing if you can.
What if I don\'t have any products to sell yet?
Then Black Friday is your motivation to create one. Build a simple digital product, bundle some coaching sessions, or offer a "founder\'s rate" on your service package. Even a $27-$97 offer creates buying momentum heading into the new year.
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About Jeremiah Krakowski
Jeremiah Krakowski is a coaching business mentor who helps coaches, course creators, and consultants scale from $3k/mo to $40k+/mo using direct response marketing, AI systems, and proven frameworks. He runs Wealthy Coach Academy and has 23+ years of experience in digital marketing. Learn more →